Mihir Ahuja speaks about the response to Operation Safed Sagar and the praise the show and his character have received.
He also shares his experience sitting in the cockpit of a MiG-21, calling it "surreal".
The actor also reveals why he once almost thought of quitting acting.
Netflix's Operation Safed Sagar continues to receive appreciation. Actor Mihir Ahuja, who played Flying Officer CH Bal Reddy, aka Baldy, is overwhelmed with love that has been pouring in for the show and is glad that his work has connected with people across the nation.
In an exclusive conversation with Outlook, Mihir says he feels grateful to play Baldy's character, saying that he has a very emotional arc in the show, and is “torn between his love for the country and his wife, finding himself in a constant dilemma. As a result, he struggles to fully commit to his training at first. This portrays military officers in a deeply human light.”
Mihir didn't get the opportunity to interact with Baldy or his family before the show. Regarding the prep, he said it was more about “getting the Air Force's walk and mood right, understanding the functions of a MiG-21, and learning how to behave like an Air Force officer.”
How The Show Moved a Kargil War Veteran to Tears
Mihir recalls getting a call from one of the Air Force officers who was Baldy's best friend and an engineer during the 1999 Kargil War. He told him that Indian Air Force was very happy to watch it and said that show like this should be preserved. When he was watching the show, he was bawling and crying a lot which broke Mihir's heart in a good way. He feels overwhelmed that the show is touching so many people and especially the officers.
On Ajay Ahuja's Emotional Funeral Scene And MiG-21 Cockpit Experience
Describing his mental state playing a character with such an emotional arc, Mihir says Ahuja's funeral scene was very difficult to shoot as everyone were emotional and it was shot in a real ghat.
“While shooting, you don't realise how it's all coming together. But when you watch the final cut, it's something completely different. We watched the show together during promotions in Delhi, and we were all in tears because it’s such an emotional series.”
Mihir also calls his experience shooting inside a MiG-21 “surreal” and “once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
He says, ”There are over 400 controls, making it exhausting to process everything. You can barely see ahead, to the right, or to the left because the cockpits are so small and claustrophobic. It's hard to imagine how pilots manage to fly them, let alone fight and drop bombs.”
Recalls Almost Giving Up on Acting
In the show, Baldy wants to quit his career for his family. When asked if he had ever felt such helplessness in his own life, the Archies actor recalls when he almost gave up on acting. ”In the very beginning of my career, when I was just giving auditions and wasn't being selected for anything, there was a day when I came back to my hostel room and just said to myself, 'I don't know if I can do this. I don't want to continue.'”
“I had a pamphlet with the addresses of several casting directors' offices. I threw it in the dustbin, thinking I would give up. But the next day, I felt suffocated and found myself searching through the trash for that paper. I realized I can’t live with the thought of giving up acting—it’s my passion, and it’s what I love to do,” he adds.
Indian Cinema Has Room for All
The 28-year-old debunks hyper-masculinity and alpha male trend in cinema because according to him “there are shows like Operation Safed Sagar, and then we have films like Animal.”
“People enjoy watching everything and there should be spice and salt, a good share of both. Filmmaking is all about entertainment and telling good stories. Both are important whatever works for the filmmakers and the audience. And there's no trend to be honest Because there's also a lot of other content being made. I'm glad that there's a balance of both in Indian cinema,” he concludes.
